Tuesday, May 24, 2011

Braciole






This wonderful classic Italian dish is the ultimate in comfort food and it plates well for a dinner party! It consists of flank steak pounded thin with a meat malot and then filled with garlic, sliced egg, pine nuts, spinach, and prosciutto and then rolled and slow cooked for a few hours until tender. It is delicious and not all that time consuming for something that looks so elegant on a plate!

 

 
Ingredients:

 
  • 4 lbs of flank steak
  • Kitchen string
  • 6 cloves of garlic minced
  • ¼ cup of olive oil
  • Provolone cheese, sliced
  • Fresh Italian parsley, chopped
  • ½ lb of prosciutto, thinly sliced
  • ½ cup of pine nuts
  • 2 cups of fresh spinach
  • Romano cheese, grated
  • Parmigiana Reggiano cheese , grated
  • 4 hard boiled eggs, sliced
  • 2 quarts of marinara sauce (see recipe for Sunday sauce or use a good jarred sauce like Midi)
  • 1 cup of dry red wine
  • ½ cup of fresh parsley, chopped
  • 1 sprig of rosemary
  • 1 spring of Italian oregano
 
Using a meat mallet, pound each flank steak until thin and tenderized. Lay flank steak out on a cutting board and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Spread minced garlic over surface of flank steaks. Lay spinach, pine nuts, provolone cheese slices, prosciutto slices, chopped parsley on top of steaks. Sprinkle with Romano cheese. Starting from the edge closest to you, roll the steak like a jelly roll taking care not to lose the filling. Tie with kitchen twine tightly at each end and also the in the middle of the roll. In a large braising pan, add the rosemary sprig and heat olive oil and then brown each roll on all sides and then remove. Remove the rosemary and discard. De glaze pan with red wine and simmer for five minutes to reduce. In a large stock pot, add sauce, basil, oregano, and the red wine reduction and stir well. Add the steak rolls and submerge in the sauce. Place in oven at 300 degrees and cover with foil. Slow cook for 1.5 hours.
Remove rolls and allow to cool slightly. Cut strings and slice into ½ inch thick slices. In a pasta bowl place some sauce in the bottom and then arrange the steak slices on top of the sauce. Garnish with grated Romano and Parmesan cheese and a parsley sprig.

 
May also be served on top of some good creamy polenta with a little sauce over top or with a side of pasta.

 
Serves 4 people.

Wednesday, May 4, 2011

Please Feel Free To Submit....

We are always up for trying new recipes, so if there is something you would like to share, or would like to see posted, let us know!  You can submit recipes to azureye31@comcast.net.  Also, let us know what you think about our recipes, or if you need help making something!


Buon Apetito! 


Michael and David

Veal Osso Bucco


Creamy Polenta with Porcini Mushrooms and Pancetta


 
I adore a good creamy polenta in the winter. It's the ultimate Italian comfort food. This is also one of my favorite recipes of David's Give it a try!

 

 
Ingredients:

 
  • 1 box of polenta
  • ½ lb of diced pancetta
  • 1 large onion, diced
  • ¼ cup of heavy cream
  • 1 to 3 cups of chicken stock (stock in a box works great!)
  • 1 container of dried porcini mushrooms
  • ¼ cup of olive oil
  • ½ cup of pecorino romano cheese, grated
  • ¼ cup of shaved pecorino romano
  • ¼ cup of fresh chopped chives

     

    Saute pancetta in a non stick skillet until crispy. Remove from pan and leave rendered fat in bottom of pan, add diced onion and sauté on low until soft. In a small sauce pan, heat ½ cup of water to boiling and add dried mushrooms. Remove from heat and allow to soak for 15 minutes.


     

    Heat chicken stock to boiling. Use the liquid to polenta ratio on the package. When chicken stock is boiling add the correct amount of polenta and stir until the polenta begins to thicken. Stir in the mushrooms (*see note) and the liquid from the mushrooms, the onion, grated cheese, pancetta, and the heavy cream. Continue to stir over low heat until the polenta is thick and creamy. DO NOT stop stirring or the polenta will burn on the bottom! If the polenta is too thick you can thin it down with a little water. It should be thick, but not dry, and also not soupy. The best way to describe the consistency would be of a custard. Serve in a deep pasta bowl and top with shaved cheese and chives. Drizzle with a good quality **olive oil. ***Serve immediately.


     


     

    Notes:

    *when using the mushroom liquid, do not use the last ¼ cup because porcinis always have a bit of grit or sand that settles in the liquid. You don't want this in your dish!


     

    **good olive oil is essential or you will not appreciate the flavor of the oil! You can also top with roasted red peppers in addition to the cheese if you wish.


     

    *** If you wait to eat the polenta, it will become firm when it cools and will loose it's creaminess. This dish is best served and eaten right away!